Questionnaire/Guide to formulate your best response

Research on the experiences of new comers on their Cultural Identity and Integration into the Canadian social main stream with reference toimmigrants from Kerala

by Jose Varghese, MSW Student, York University, Toronto

• How long you have been in Canada?
  
• Do you think Canada’s multi-culturalism is a good deal for you and your family to establish a good life in Canada?
  Why?
  
• What is your concept of quality of life in Canada?
  What was your expectation about having a social life in Canada?
  Does it remain as a ‘dream’?
  
• Have you ever had a good opportunity to get involved in Canadian social life?
  or
  How do you get yourself involved in Canadian Social life?
  
• Having said that, have you ever felt that you are part of Canadian main-stream?
  
• Have you experienced a distinct cultural identity of your own people?
  
• What you think are the distinctive features of that identity?
  What are most important to you when you speak about your cultural identity that you want to retain?
  (While answering this consider your family and children)
  Do you feel that those values have a positive impact in constructing an identity of yourself in the new culture?
  
• Do you think that there is a link between your cultural identity and the process of integration in to the social main stream.
  
• What do you do/ involuntarily doing to retain the cultural ID?
  Family physician/Kerala Restaurants/food/grocery/films/video rentals music/
  Malayalam news papers/periodicals/TV-Satellite channels/Radio
  Cultural programmes/talent shows for children
  Festival celebrations/parties
  Faith based gatherings/community meetings/church/temple visits
  Informal regular discussions about the changes happening around the state
  
• Do you think that some of these are absolutely essential for making your family
  and social life to be more meaningful?
  In other words, do you want to encourage your children learn more about your
  culture, indigenous practices and values?
  What do you think about the utility/usefulness of those values and how does it
  help your children to be successful in the Canadian society?
  
• Have you ever represented your culture/community values in an organization
  or at your work place, knowingly revealed your cultural identity?
  (Expressed or even talked positively to the group/sub groups as well)
  
• Having said that, have you ever attempted to voice your concerns arising
  out of your cultural consciousness?
  How was it received?
  
• Do you feel that/ have you ever felt that/ revealing such an identity has a
  negative influence on achieving a total integration into the main stream?
  If you think so, what are the stumbling blocks that prevent one from
  achieving a total integration?
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  Cultural dimension- your approach
  
• To what extend you are conscious of your culture/values when you talk
  to/present a topic with another member from a different community?
• How far you consider the cultural sensitivity of the person you are talking to?
  
• Do you value your personal preferences or a kind of equilibrium behavior?
  
• What is the meaning of multi-culturalism to you in terms of your approach?
  Attitudes and Behavior
• Do you think the ‘Attitude’ makes a big difference in Integration?
  Whose attitude is more important to you?
  
• Do you distinguish a difference between structural integration and cultural integration?
  Which has a priority for you? Or do you see a chronological connection
  
• Do you think the attitudes of the host society affect your integration positively?
  Or negatively?
  
• If you are culturally safe within your community does it provide you with a
  secure environment for you to break into the new culture?
  
• Do you consider’ living between two cultures’ affect your efficiency and success?
  How does it influence or pressurize your behavior?
  
• Have you ever felt changing from a ‘collectivist’ Asian culture to a society that
  values ‘self-fulfillment’ as a norm to be a more painful and stressful process?
  
• Have you ever felt marginalized?
  
• Have you gone through an Identity Crisis as part of your efforts to get integrated to the main stream?
  
• How does the integration reflect in your behavior within your family?
  
• Have you been experiencing/comfortable with a trans-national identity?
  
• Do you prefer your children to maintain a TN ID?
  
• Have you ever felt xeno-phobia- (fear of strangers)
  Have you ever experienced racism/ discrimination?
  
• Have you felt victimized of skin color/ language / branding as south Asian?
  
• Has this resulted in a feeling of oppression?
  
• Have you ever witnessed victims of oppression who have internalized oppression in your community?
  Social Capital and mobility
• Do you see a connection between mobilizing social capital and upward mobility
  in your community?
  
• Do you think that having ‘a small social net-work means less accessibility’ true
  within your community?
  
• Have you felt the behavior of the dominant community ‘inclusive’ to
  accommodate the new comers
  
• Have you felt this ‘inclusiveness’ in private gatherings/ social gatherings/ government functions?
  
• Have you felt that a lack of social inclusion as main reason for unsuccessful level of integration?
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

It is a PREDICAMENT......

It is with greater expectations and hope new comers-the immigrants look forward to become part of the new society,the new culture.....Theorists call the process 'Integration', 'Assimilation' or 'Acculturation' and 'Adaptation' and so on...At first it was believed that the new comers shed their old culture, imbibe traits of the new culture and an entirely new culture is formed - this is explained as 'melting-pot' theory.But, later on it was explained that even after years, after generations too, the settlers retain part of their original culture and communities meet together ( and advocate for ) and exhibit the original traits. New theories separated a structural dimension and a cultural dimension in the process. Accordingly, even though the structural integration happens, the cultural integration might not. Based on the level of integration there are 4 different levels of integration - 2 extremes like the fully integrated and the marginalized, and two mediocre levels, explained later on.However, in a multi cultural environment, the structure allows diversity and shows tolerance to different cultures. New theorists say that a cultural 'hybridization' is what is taking place. So everyone shows one's preferrerd behavior and an equilibrium behavior as well, all times.Whatever, theoretical interpretations are used to explain the process of integration, it is a predicament of the new comer until he is comfortably integrated within the new structure.For the purpose of studying the process in detail, the elements of integration have been grouped under four domains.